They said Careca would do it. Then Romario. It was a formality that Ronaldo would. Yet as supernatural as those strikers were for Brazil, they didn’t manage to catch Pele’s haul of 77 goals.
It was finally eclipsed by someone they said was more a maker than taker of chances, too fragile for the rough-and-tumble jungle that is international football. Neymar bagged a brace – and upped his tally to 79 – to get Brazil off to a flying start in FIFA World Cup 26™ qualifying, but hasn’t worn canary-yellow in almost two years, largely due to a ruptured ACL suffered against Uruguay.
That could be about to change. On Monday, he played the full 90 for the fifth game running, and scored twice, as Santos sunk Juventude 3-1. Multiple members of Carlo Ancelotti’s backroom staff were in the crowd as the 66-year-old prepares to name his latest Seleção squad.
On the 15th anniversary of Neymar’s Brazil debut, FIFA pays homage to a one-of-a-kind genius.
Brazil’s top scorers
1st) Neymar – 79 goals
2nd) Pele – 77
3rd) Ronaldo – 62
4th) Romario – 56
5th) Zico – 48
A 60-year record
Pele had reigned as Brazil’s outright leading international marksman for 60 years. He outranked Ademir de Menezes, who hit 32 goals for Brazil, in 1962.
Boy wonder
Whispers of Neymar’s phenomenal talent began spreading when he was ten. Zito, the two-time World Cup winner, was swiftly persuaded to watch him play futsal. “I was blown away,” recalled the former midfielder. “I went to see the [Santos] president right away and told him he had to sign Neymar immediately.”
That president, however, informed Zito that Santos didn’t have an age group for Neymar. “So create one!” Zito urged Marcelo Teixeira. The latter duly did.
At 13 he spent 20 days on trial at Real Madrid, who boasted David Beckham, Roberto Carlos, Ronaldo and Zinedine Zidane at the time. The Spanish superpower pulled out all the stops to sign him, and almost succeeded, but Neymar elected to remain at Santos. He made his club debut as a 17-year-old in 2009 and instantly began thrilling.
The call that didn’t come
There was a clamour for Dunga to take Neymar to South Africa 2010. It heightened when Pele urged the coach to pick the 18-year-old. The bullheaded Dunga nevertheless refused to relent and, lacking creativity, Brazil lost 2-1 to the Netherlands in the quarter-finals.
First game, first goal
Mano Menezes handed Neymar his international debut in Brazil’s first outing after South Africa 2010. He took just 28 minutes to open his account – uncharacteristically with a forcible header – in a 2-0 win against USA in East Rutherford.
When Neymar first scored for Brazil…
Biggest victims
Neymar has scored nine goals in only five games against Japan. His next-favourite victims are Peru (6 goals), Bolivia (5) and USA (5).
Did you know?
Brazil’s record World Cup marksmen
1st) Ronaldo – 15 goals in 19 games
2nd) Pele – 12 in 14
3rd) Ademir de Menezes – 9 in 6
3rd) Vava – 9 in 10
3rd) Jairzinho – 9 in 16
6th) Leonidas da Silva – 8 in 4
6th) Neymar – 8 in 13
6th) Rivaldo – 8 in 14
9th) Careca – 7 in 9
10th) Bebeto – 6
10th) Rivellino – 6
Major titles with Brazil
Neymar scored four goals in five games, including a gem in a 3-0 win over Spain in the final, and seized the adidas Golden Ball.
It was the only crown Brazil didn’t have in their sacred collection – despite trying badly to claim it. On home soil Neymar made sure they did, scoring and assisting goals and tucking away the winning penalty in the gold medal shootout against Germany.
Crowning glory?
Neymar attributed his desperation to play in the World Cup 26 as one of the reasons he returned to Santos in January. “It will be my last mission,” he stated. “I am going after this World Cup trophy in any way I can.”
Ancelotti left Neymar out of his first Brazil squad – the Mogi das Cruzes native had just returned from a hamstring injury – but insisted that the player was part of his plans. “Brazil is counting on him,” said the Italian. “He returned to Brazil to prepare properly for the World Cup. I spoke with him this morning to explain my decision and he was completely understanding.”
Brazil have already ensured their unique record of participating in every World Cup will continue in North America. Will Ancelotti recall Neymar for their final two qualifiers against Chile and Bolivia in September?
